Unemployment rate in India at 5%, highest in 5 years

New Delhi: The unemployment rate in India has shot up to a five-year high of 5% in 2015-16, with the figure significantly higher at 8.7% for women as compared to 4.3% for men, says a report by Labour Bureau.

The figures could be an alarm bell for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled government at the Centre, which has taken a series of steps such as ‘Make in India’ to create jobs for inclusive growth in the country.

According to the fifth annual employment-unemployment survey at all-India level, about 77% of the households were reported to be having no regular wage/salaried person. It said the unemployment rate was estimated to be 5% at all-India level under the usual principal status (UPS) approach.

Unemployment rate was 4.9% in 2013-14, 4.7% (2012-13), 3.8% (2011-12) and 9.3% (2009-10). Labour Bureau did not bring out any such report for 2014-15.

“In rural sector, unemployment rate was 5.1% whereas in urban sector, the rate was 4.9% under the UPS approach,” the report said.

The figure was significantly higher among females compared to males. Female unemployment rate was estimated to be 8.7%, whereas for males it was 4.3%.

In urban areas, female unemployment rate was estimated to be 12.1% at pan-India level compared to 3.3% for males and 10.3% for transgenders.

The survey was conducted across all states and union territories during April 2015 to December 2015. A total sample of 1,56,563 households were covered in the survey—88,783 households in the rural sector and 67,780 in the urban sector.

Topping the chart among the states and union territories was Tripura (19.7%) followed by Sikkim (18.1%), Lakshadweep (16.1%), Andaman and Nicobar islands (12.7%), Kerala (12.5%) and Himachal Pradesh (10.6%).